Rupee gains 7 paise to close at 77.98 to the dollar as oil price falls

The rupee appreciated by 7 paise to settle at 77.98 against the US dollar on Monday as crude oil prices retreated from elevated levels.

The rupee appreciated by 7 paise to settle at 77.98 (provisional) against the US dollar on Monday as crude oil prices retreated from elevated levels.

However, unabated foreign fund outflows restricted the appreciation bias in the rupee, forex dealers said.

At the interbank forex market, the local unit opened strong at 77.98 against the greenback and witnessed an intra-day high of 77.87 and a low of 78.03.

It finally settled at 77.98, a rise of 7 paise over its previous close of 78.05.

"Rupee consolidated in a broad range despite volatility in domestic and global equities. Fed projection showed economic growth slowing to a below-trend rate of 1.7 per cent," said Gaurang Somaiya, Forex & Bullion Analyst, Motilal Oswal Financial Services.

On the domestic equity market front, the BSE Sensex ended 237.42 points or 0.46 per cent higher at 51,597.84, while the broader NSE Nifty advanced 56.65 points or 0.37 per cent to 15,350.15.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was down 0.37 per cent at 104.31.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, fell 0.11 per cent to USD 112.99 per barrel.

Foreign institutional investors were net sellers in the capital market on Friday as they offloaded shares worth Rs 7,818.61 crore, as per exchange data.